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Waste Biorefinery Technologies for Accelerating Sustainable Energy Processes, 2nd Edition
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Waste Biorefinery Technologies for Accelerating Sustainable Energy Processes, 2nd Edition

A special issue of Reactions (ISSN 2624-781X).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 October 2025 | Viewed by 1725

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Diogo M.F. Santos

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Center of Physics and Engineering of Advanced Materials (CeFEMA), Instituto Superior Técnico, Universidade de Lisboa, 1049-001 Lisbon, Portugal
Interests: renewable gases; green hydrogen; water electrolysis; hydrogen evolution reaction; oxygen evolution reaction; hydrogen economy
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Catarina Nobre

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
VALORIZA—Research Center for Endogenous Resource Valorization, Campus Politécnico, 10, 7300-555 Portalegre, Portugal
Interests: bioenergy; biofuels; biochar; pyrolysis; gasification; refuse derived fuels; biomass wastes
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Paulo Brito

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
VALORIZA—Researche Center for Endogenous Resources Valorization, Polytecnic Institute of Portalegre Campus Politécnico, 10, 7300-555 Portalegre, Portugal
Interests: bioenergy; thermal gasification; waste valorization; electrolysis; corrosion
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Margarida Gonçalves

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Mechanical Engineering and Resource Sustainability Center, Faculty of Science and Technology, NOVA University of Lisbon, 2829-516 Caparica, Portugal
Interests: biofuels; biomass; thermochemical processes; waste valorization; microalgae; biorefineries
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

By 2030, the bio-based economy is expected to have grown significantly in Europe. One of the pillars of this bioeconomy is the concept of biorefinery, the sustainable processing of several kinds of waste and biomass into a spectrum of marketable products and energy. While many research efforts have been conducted toward understanding, modelling, and designing conversion processes that can sustain a true circular economy, this knowledge is fragmented and unevenly distributed across Europe. Several countries lack appropriate policies and public engagement to endeavour the challenges ahead. Harmonisation must start with robust knowledge and the ability to cover the entire value chain, from source materials to marketable products. That is the mission of COST Action CA20127—waste biorefinery technologies for accelerating sustainable energy processes (WIRE).

The WIRE COST Action is broadly organised into four key working groups (WGs) that bring together experts from academia, industry, and technology transfer organisations and cover (1) raw materials, (2) biorefinery conversion technologies, (3) biorefinery applications, and (4) communication and dissemination. These WGs will proactively contribute to promoting (i) the circular economy, (ii) bioenergy and bioeconomy, (iii) research and innovation in the field, (iv) applied research towards biorefineries’ implementation, and (v) EU-wide harmonisation of the scientific and technical approaches, thus facilitating engagement with policy-makers and industry, laying the groundwork for a more effective link with the relevant industry sectors and attracting their interest.

This Special Issue in Reactions aims to publish some of the outcomes of WIRE COST Action and other research works that fall within the topic of the issue. We hope that this Special Issue can positively influence the future landscape in science and technology in the critical field of waste biorefineries.

Dr. Diogo M.F. Santos
Dr. Catarina Nobre
Dr. Paulo Brito
Dr. Margarida Gonçalves
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Reactions is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1000 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • biorefinery
  • biomass
  • waste valorization
  • biofuels

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Related Special Issue

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

19 pages, 2835 KiB  
Article
Production of Lipase from Streptomyces spp. AM9-01 by Solid-State Fermentation of Residual Babassu Mesocarp and Immobilization in Accurel® MP1000
by Aldo A. T. Junior, Tamires N. dos Anjos, Melissa L. E. Gutarra, Rodrigo P. do Nascimento and Ivaldo Itabaiana Jr.
Reactions 2025, 6(1), 11; https://doi.org/10.3390/reactions6010011 - 4 Feb 2025
Viewed by 723
Abstract
A wide range of agro-industrial waste has been generated due to higher demands for food and energy. New protocols for its valorization are urgent strategies for sustainable development. In this work, residual babassu mesocarp, a native plant from the north of Brazil, was [...] Read more.
A wide range of agro-industrial waste has been generated due to higher demands for food and energy. New protocols for its valorization are urgent strategies for sustainable development. In this work, residual babassu mesocarp, a native plant from the north of Brazil, was used as a matrix for producing lipases through solid-state fermentation (SSF) by actinobacterial strains. Initially, 121 strains were screened by rhodamine B and tributyrin methods, where strain Streptomyces spp. AM9-01 was the most promising. It was submitted to the SSF at 30 °C, where 84.8 ± 1.5 U·mL−1 of hydrolytic activity (HA) was found in 48 h. Further studies at pH 7 increased lipase production, achieving 94.6 ± 1.6 U·mL−1 of HA in 12 h. The enzymatic extract was immobilized in Accurel® MP1000, where the biocatalyst Lip 10 showed 79.9 ± 1.5% immobilization efficiency, 4234 ± 24 U·g−1 of HA, and activity retention of 55.4%. Lip10 was used to synthesize ethyl oleate, showing conversions of over 97% in 6 h of reaction, while the commercial biocatalysts TLIM® and N435® showed conversions of over 95% in just 8 h. In addition, Lip10 showed operational stability for eight consecutive cycles. Therefore, it was demonstrated that babassu mesocarp is a viable alternative for obtaining competitive biocatalysts containing lipases for industrial applications from SSF by actinobacteria, which have few reports in the literature and could be potential biocatalytic agents. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Waste Biorefinery Technologies for Accelerating Sustainable Energy Processes, 2nd Edition)
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19 pages, 4042 KiB  
Article
Electrolysis of Liquefied Biomass for Sustainable Hydrogen and Organic Compound Production: A Biorefinery Approach
by Ana P. R. A. Ferreira, M. Margarida Mateus and Diogo M. F. Santos
Reactions 2025, 6(1), 10; https://doi.org/10.3390/reactions6010010 - 2 Feb 2025
Viewed by 753
Abstract
Liquefaction is an effective thermochemical process for converting lignocellulosic biomass into bio-oil, a hydrocarbon-rich resource. This study explores liquefied biomass electrolysis as a novel method to promote the electrocracking of organic molecules into value-added compounds while simultaneously producing hydrogen (H2). Key [...] Read more.
Liquefaction is an effective thermochemical process for converting lignocellulosic biomass into bio-oil, a hydrocarbon-rich resource. This study explores liquefied biomass electrolysis as a novel method to promote the electrocracking of organic molecules into value-added compounds while simultaneously producing hydrogen (H2). Key innovations include utilizing water from the liquefaction process as an electrolyte component to minimize industrial waste and incorporating carbon dioxide (CO2) into the process to enhance decarbonization efforts and generate valuable byproducts. The electrolysis process was optimized by adding 2 M KOH, and voltammetric methods were employed to analyze the resulting emulsion. The experimental conditions, such as the temperature, anode material, current type, applied cell voltage, and CO2 bubbling, were systematically evaluated. Direct current electrolysis at 70 °C using nickel electrodes produced 55 mL of H2 gas with the highest Faradaic (43%) and energetic (39%) efficiency. On the other hand, pulsed electrolysis at room temperature generated a higher H2 gas volume (102 mL) but was less efficient, showing 30% Faradaic and 11% energetic efficiency. FTIR analysis revealed no significant functional group changes in the electrolyte post-electrolysis. Additionally, the solid deposits formed at the anode had an ash content of 36%. This work demonstrates that electrocracking bio-oil is a clean, sustainable approach to H2 production and the synthesis of valuable organic compounds, offering significant potential for biorefinery applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Waste Biorefinery Technologies for Accelerating Sustainable Energy Processes, 2nd Edition)
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